Daya Bay Reactor Antineutrino Experiment Research Articles

Data processing and storage in the Daya Bay Reactor Antineutrino Experiment

The Daya Bay Reactor Antineutrino Experiment reported the first observation of the non-zero neutrino mixing angle θ13 using the first 55 days of data. It has also provided the most precise measurement of θ13 with the extended data to 621 days. Daya Bay will keep running for another 3 years or so. There is about 100 TB raw data produced per year, as well as several copies of reconstruction data with similar volume to the raw data for each copy. The raw data is transferred to Daya Bay onsite and two offsite clusters: IHEP in Beijing and LBNL in California, with a short latency. There is quasi-real-time data processing at both onsite and offsite clusters, for the purpose of data quality monitoring, detector calibration and preliminary data analyses. The physics data production took place a couple of times per year according to the physics analysis plan. This paper will introduce the data movement and storage, data processing and monitoring, and the automation of the calibration.

Neutron calibration sources in the Daya Bay experiment

We describe the design and construction of the low rate neutron calibration sources used in the Daya Bay Reactor Anti-neutrino Experiment. Such sources are free of correlated gamma-neutron emission, which is essential in minimizing induced background in the anti-neutrino detector. The design characteristics have been validated in the Daya Bay anti-neutrino detector.

Search for a light sterile neutrino at Daya Bay.

A search for light sterile neutrino mixing was performed with the first 217 days of data from the Daya Bay Reactor Antineutrino Experiment. The experiment's unique configuration of multiple baselines from six 2.9 GW(th) nuclear reactors to six antineutrino detectors deployed in two near (effective baselines 512 m and 561 m) and one far (1579 m) underground experimental halls makes it possible to test for oscillations to a fourth (sterile) neutrino in the 10(-3) eV(2)<|Δm(41)(2) |< 0.3 eV(2) range. The relative spectral distortion due to the disappearance of electron antineutrinos was found to be consistent with that of the three-flavor oscillation model. The derived limits on sin(2) 2θ(14) cover the 10(-3) eV(2) ≲ |Δm(41)(2)| ≲ 0.1 eV(2) region, which was largely unexplored.

Assembly and Installation of the Daya Bay Antineutrino Detectors

The Daya Bay reactor antineutrino experiment is designed to make a precision measurement of the neutrino mixing angle θ13, and recently made the definitive discovery of its non-zero value. It utilizes a set of eight, functionally identical antineutrino detectors to measure the reactor flux and spectrumat baselines of ∼ 300–2000 m from the Daya Bay and Ling Ao Nuclear Power Plants. The Daya Bay antineutrino detectors were built in an above-ground facility and deployed side-by-side at three underground experimental sites near and far from the nuclear reactors. This configuration allows the experiment to make a precision measurement of reactor antineutrino disappearance over km-long baselines and reduces relative systematic uncertainties between detectors and nuclear reactors. This paper describes the assembly and installation of the Daya Bay antineutrino detectors.

Long-term testing and properties of acrylic for the Daya Bay antineutrino detectors

The Daya Bay reactor antineutrino experiment has recently measured the neutrino mixing parameter sin22θ13 by observing electron antineutrino disappearance over kilometer-scale baselines using six antineutrino detectors at near and far distances from reactor cores at the Daya Bay nuclear power complex. Liquid scintillator contained in transparent target vessels is used to detect electron antineutrinos via the inverse beta-decay reaction. The Daya Bay experiment will operate for about five years yielding a precision measurement of sin22θ13. We report on long-term studies of poly(methyl methacrylate) known as acrylic, which is the primary material used in the fabrication of the target vessels for the experiment's antineutrino detectors. In these studies, acrylic samples are subjected to gaseous and liquid environmental conditions similar to those experienced during construction, transport, and operation of the Daya Bay acrylic target vessels and detectors. Mechanical and optical stability of the acrylic as well as its interaction with detector liquids is reported.

Fluorocarbon paint on Daya Bay antineutrino detectors

The aim of the Daya Bay reactor antineutrino experiment is to determine the neutrino mixing angle ϕ13 with a sensitivity of 0.01 or better at 90% confidence level. In order to improve the position resolution of both the positron interaction and the neutron capture, the inside of the antineutrino detectors should be as unreflecting as possible. A black matt fluorocarbon paint is coated on the inner surface of the detectors made of 304L stainless steel to meet the physical requirement. This paint is compatible with mineral oil, has low radioactivity, is easy to spray and fast curing at normal temperatures. The coating has excellent performance such as good adhesive force, uniformity, compact, scratch and wear resistance, and so on. It is the first application of such paint to large physical devices.

Suppressing ringing caused by large photomultiplier tube signals

We describe here the characteristic features of the ringing we observed following large PMT signals in the Daya Bay reactor antineutrino experiment. We conclude that the ceramic capacitors used in the circuitry of the PMT bases and the HV-signal decouplers are the primary cause for this ringing. We present some possible schemes to reduce the ringing when replacing these ceramic capacitors is not feasible.

A study of antineutrino spectra from spent nuclear fuel at Daya Bay

The Daya Bay Reactor Antineutrino Experiment is designed to determine the as yet unknown neutrino mixing angle, θ13, by measuring the disappearance of electron antineutrinos from several nuclear reactor cores. The projected sensitivity in sin2 (2θ13) of better than 0.01 at a 90% CL should be achieved after three years of data-taking. Antineutrinos emitted from spent nuclear fuel (SNF) distort the soft part of the energy spectrum. In this article, a calculation of the antineutrino spectra from the long-life isotopes in SNF is performed. A non-equilibrium generation of long half-life isotopes during the running time of the reactor is also analyzed. Finally, we show that the antineutrino event rate contribution from SNF, which has been stored in the SNF pool for several years, may be non-negligible.

Daya Bay reactor anti-neutrino experiment

The Daya Bay Reactor Anti-Neutrino Experiment is a neutrino oscillation experiment designed to observe and measure the neutrino mixing angle θ13. The sensitivity goal is 0.01 in sin 22θ13 at the 90% confidence level, a significant improvement over the current limit. This will be accomplished by measuring the relative rates and energy spectra of reactor electron antineutrinos with multiple detectors positioned at different baselines. Civil construction is currently under-way as detector designs and planning near completion. Commissioning activities should be completed by the end of 2010, followed by a three-year run.

An underground cosmic-ray detector made of RPC

Owing to its high efficiency, low cost and low sensitivity to environmental gamma-rays, resistive plate chamber (RPC) is a good candidate for large area underground cosmic-ray detectors. We report in this paper such a design for the Daya Bay reactor antineutrino experiment based on calculations and simulations for the efficiency, dead space control, noise and gamma-ray backgrounds. Experimental tests are performed, and good agreements with calculations and simulations are obtained, showing that the design is appropriate.